I think this article by Robert Steinback underscores why the Bush administration is getting (and probably will continue to get) nowhere on their "democracy promotion" agenda in Latin America:
Fixing the ''Chávez problem'' requires much more than OAS states applying pressure to force rogue leaders to "govern democratically.''
The Achilles' heel of laissez-faire capitalism is its regard of people solely as a fungible factor of production, rather than as warm-blooded individuals who go home to spouses, kids and parents after a day in the factory or the field. Human beings are more than data points on a graph.
Those little mathematical units of ''labor'' are people who get frustrated, angry, confused or desperate. In their anxiety, they may resist what they see as an unfair economic system -- backing a crippling strike, endorsing an anti-capitalist candidate or signing on with a guerrilla faction or fundamentalist religious movement.
Economic justice doesn't have to be code for Marxism or nationalized industries. It can be accomplished through balance within a capitalist economy, with roles played by unions to protect worker rights and health, government regulators to protect consumers and investors and advocates to defend environmental quality, child safety, indigenous rights and more.
Failure to address the needs and dissatisfactions of the greater population is what undermines democracies. It's why 14 democratically elected Western Hemisphere governments have been toppled just since 1989 -- while the nations of Western Europe, which have utilized a more socialized and labor friendly version of capitalism, have enjoyed relative political stability since World War II.
Even members of the Venezuelan opposition have pointed out that Chávez "has a deep emotional connection with the people" and he has had the luxury of directing money from high oil prices to social programs. [Ed.note: Anti-Chávez readers, please click the above link and read the post before reacting]. Democracy has to involve economic justice as well and Latin America remains very unjust economically. If you want to fight communism and reckless, demagogic populism, the most effective way would seem to be to me to make capitalism, fair and just. No one likes to spend their life looking up from the bottom with little chance of improvement.
Comments